Kip Powick Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 It would seem that many folks went to Haiti this year and now want to come back to Canada because Haiti has once again erupted into political violence. Those that flew down using AT are whining that AT isn't doing enough to get them out of the country. Most have huddled in a resort and are screaming for AT to fly down and rescue them AT has an aircraft and crew on standby and , rightly so, are not going to turn a wheel until they can be guaranteed safe arrival and departure What is wrong with these idiotic travelers that feel that the airline that flew them down there should rescue them just because they may have paid for a round trip ticket?? I am bias, but having been there decades ago and that is the last country I would visit in my free time, (taken to the hotel in armed vehicles and not allowed to leave hotel without armed escorts....so much fun.....,.and it was a humanitarian cargo flight). I understand there are probably many who went back to visit relatives that are still down there but they made that choice and if they think AT is going to endanger their staff to bring a few whiners back..........well they might have a long wait. Sorta like the woman that planned a trip down south and a few days after her arrival there was an earthquake and she wanted to sue AC for taking her to an area where there could be possible earthquakes any time of the century. And finally....since the quake of 2010 the USA has given Haiti 13 BILLION in aid and Canada has given 220 MILLION....where did this money go........? Don't bother answering because we all know where most of it went. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 35 minutes ago, Kip Powick said: It would seem that many folks went to Haiti this year and now want to come back to Canada because Haiti has once again erupted into political violence. Those that flew down using AT are whining that AT isn't doing enough to get them out of the country. Most have huddled in a resort and are screaming for AT to fly down and rescue them AT has an aircraft and crew on standby and , rightly so, are not going to turn a wheel until they can be guaranteed safe arrival and departure What is wrong with these idiotic travelers that feel that the airline that flew them down there should rescue them just because they may have paid for a round trip ticket?? I am bias, but having been there decades ago and that is the last country I would visit in my free time, (taken to the hotel in armed vehicles and not allowed to leave hotel without armed escorts....so much fun.....,.and it was a humanitarian cargo flight). I understand there are probably many who went back to visit relatives that are still down there but they made that choice and if they think AT is going to endanger their staff to bring a few whiners back..........well they might have a long wait. Sorta like the woman that planned a trip down south and a few days after her arrival there was an earthquake and she wanted to sue AC for taking her to an area where there could be possible earthquakes any time of the century. And finally....since the quake of 2010 the USA has given Haiti 13 BILLION in aid and Canada has given 220 MILLION....where did this money go........? Don't bother answering because we all know where most of it went. You do have a point but Haiti was placed under the following advisory more than a year ago. You have to wonder why, folks would go there, vacations would continue to be sold for there. etc. The article is all about AT but does AC have any customers stranded there? Quote Canadian government issues travel advisory for Haiti Shelby Knox Monday, July 9th 2018 - 5:41 am istock.com/Milenius Canadians are being told to avoid all non-essential travel to Haiti as violent protests sweep the Caribbean nation. A travel advisory has been issued with officials tweeting out, "Protesters have set up burning barricades in the main streets of Port-au-Prince as well as in residential neighbourhoods. Limit your movements." The protests are in reaction to a fuel price hike from the Haitian government - by Saturday government officials suspended the hike as protesters took to the streets. The planned hike would have increased the price of gasoline 38%, diesel 47%, and kerosene 51% according to a Haitian newspaper, Le Nouvelliste. There are reports of demonstrators attacking hotels in Port-au-Prince. https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/haiti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blues deville Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 There is a long time connection between Haiti and Quebec. Not sure if these Canadians are on vacation or just visiting family. First time in Haiti (1988) I positioned into PAP to DH the next day to Guadeloupe. On the taxi ride from the airport the back seat filled with engine exhaust fumes. The streets of Port Au Prince were an open sewage system. Children wearing rags for clothes. The Holiday Inn pool was green and filled with an unknown vegetation. The rooms smelled of mildew with old shag carpeting. The next day was like something out of an escape movie with hundreds of people being merged into an airport departure lounge with no air conditioning. It was brutal and I haven’t forgotten that I will never visit that place again. I’ve always wondered too about all of the aid money given to this country and where it was spent. Obviously not towards any infrastructure. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_Haiti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Canadians trapped in Haiti amid protests Calgary Herald 15 Feb 2019 RENE BRUEMMER DIEU NALIO CHERY / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Protesters demanding the resignation of Haitian President Jovenel Moise overturned cars and blocked major highways across the Caribbean nation, trapping more than 100 Canadian tourists and aid workers. ‘WE’VE LIVED THROUGH A COUP D’ETAT, AN EARTHQUAKE, A HURRICANE — THINGS CAN HAPPEN IN THIS COUNTRY’ Roughly 100 Quebec tourists are trapped at their all-inclusive beachfront hotel north of Haiti’s capital as violent protests rock the Caribbean nation, blocking access to the airport and forcing the Canadian government to close its embassy on Thursday. The hotel is located 75 kilometres north of Port-au-Prince. Route 1, the only highway linking the hotel to the airport, is considered extremely dangerous at this point. At the same time, two city of Montreal employees working in Haiti have left in the last two days, while eight officers with the Montreal police force on a training mission have opted to stay, saying their security is not at risk. The Quebecers are in Haiti on all-inclusive vacation packages organized by Air Transat. Many were scheduled to leave Sunday, but travel on main routes has been closed for a week as protesters demanding the ouster of President Jovenel Moise over widespread unemployment and rampant inflation have been blocking roads and looting stores. The protests have left at least seven people dead. Terry Watson, 58, and her partner Sylvain Limoges, 55, have been at the Royal Decameron resort for 11 days now, four days longer than anticipated. “Air Transat keeps saying that they’re trying to find a way by car to bring us to the airport, which is impossible,” Watson told Postmedia News. “Everybody here is nervous, having a hard time sleeping. We’re worried the unrest will go on, and we will be stuck here for months. “We need to go by helicopter but Air Transat refuses.” Tourists from other locations, including the United States and Europe, were airlifted from the hotel by helicopters organized by their tour companies. Watson tried to rent one, at a cost of $350 per person, but it arrived too late to catch Air Transat’s Wednesday flight. Air Transat told clients attempting to book helicopters the company could not be held liable for their safety. “It’s going well given the circumstances. They feel safe, “said Watson’s daughter, Marie-Christine Remy, who lives in Sherbrooke. She noted the resort is surrounded by guards. “But they are eager to get back home. They were supposed to be back Sunday.” It’s her mother’s first visit to Haiti. “What I want to know is why Air Transat was still flying people to Haiti if they knew it was unsafe,” Rémy said. Air Transat public relations head Debbie Cabana said the company’s last flight of all-inclusive travellers went to Haiti on Feb. 6. Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Port-au-Prince on Feb. 7 to demand Moise’s resignation, following months of unrest. Global Affairs Canada issued an advisory warning Tuesday against all non-essential travel to Haiti “due to civil unrest throughout the country.” Michel Bougie, vice-president of an evangelical Christian foundation that has been present in Haiti for 20 years, said his team had been scheduled to return home on Wednesday but “they can’t move.” “All the roads in the country are blocked,” Bougie said in Montreal. “It’s really a well-concerted effort to literally paralyze the country with the goal of destabilizing the government.” Bougie said his team of doctors, nurses and other personnel are safe despite the violence. “We’ve lived through a coup d’etat, an earthquake, a hurricane — things can happen in this country,” Bougie said. “But they are people we love enormously.” The heavily fortified Canadian embassy in Port-auPrince was closed on Thursday to ensure the safety of employees as well as Canadian diplomats and their families. Asked whether Global Affairs Canada was helping to extricate the travellers, spokesman Richard Walker said in an email: “Consular services are being provided to Canadian citizens in Haiti and we stand ready to provide assistance to Canadians who require it. … Global Affairs Canada is also working with tour operators to provide consular advice to them as they work to ensure that their clients are able to leave Haiti safely.” Air Transat still has two flights a week shuttling between Montreal and Portau-Prince, but only Haitian passengers wishing to return home or visiting family or for work are being flown into the country. “We have about 100 passengers at the hotel and they are staying there because it is the safest place at this point,” Cabana said. “The trouble is with the shuttle between the hotel and the airport. This transfer is not considered safe. We really want to bring them out all together, and for operational and security issues we are looking more at a land transfer than helicopter transportation.” Passengers stranded in Haiti are not being charged for extra days. Those who were booked to go to Haiti in February are being offered different destinations, or can opt to delay their trip to Haiti to a later time. There were two city of Montreal employees in Haiti during the protests, one with the city’s infrastructure services, the other with Montreal’s Haiti-Canada municipal co-operation program. City officials said Thursday one city employee was repatriated last night and the other was on a plane home. Two others came home Sunday night, but that was already planned. “We will repatriate the city employees who are in Haiti,” Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said. “It’s not a decision that’s easy to take. Obviously, we want to be able to support the Haitian population and contribute as little as possible to the state of instability there. But at the same time, we have a duty to protect our employees and ensure they’re safe.” As for the Montreal police officers, “for now, it’s their decision,” Plante said. “We’re discussing with them.” The eight officers in Haiti who are there to train security workers will stay for the time being, as their safety is not considered at risk, a Montreal police force spokesperson said. A doctor and nurses from New Brunswick working in Haiti have also been unable to access the airport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st27 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Media won’t mention ....These are probably “new” Canadians who have gone “home” for “holidays”.....same story played out a few years ago in Lebanon. When “rescued” by Air Canada from a war zone , the citizens complained about seating assignments, meal choices, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j.k. Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 I've operated into Port-au-Prince a handful of times. It's an airport terminal experience like none other... I got the impression that the hodgepodge of men with guns and uniforms doing their day job at the airport, probably had a night job with the gangs outside the fence. We were met every time by Canadian embassy security staff, who always briefed us that the situation was not good in the streets... armed convoy was the only way to get around... The people we were flying were certainly not vacationers. Lots of deportees going down, and medical patients with family or status in Canada coming back... I can't imagine why you'd want to go there for vacation... People want an adventure in a known trouble area? Better be ready to fend for yourself and get yourself out when SHTF... this isn't on airlines or Canadians (government) to bail them out on. Personal responsibility and accountability for your own decisions. It's a fading idea in this world apparently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.O. Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Many Canadians travel to Haiti to do volunteer / missionary work. I don't know if that's the case with any of the Air Transat passengers, but it is quite commonplace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 Yesterday, February 16, 2019, 10:24:22 PM Situation in Haiti: Transat repatriates its travellers Yesterday, February 16, 2019, 10:20:51 PM | Canadian Aviation News Provided by Transat A. T. Inc/CNW MONTREAL, Feb. 16, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ – Transat has announced that it is repatriating its 113 travellers today from the Royal Decameron Indigo Beach Resort & Spa in Haiti. Air Transat Flight TS667, an Airbus A310 of 250 seats, is scheduled to depart from Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince at 4:30 p.m. and is expected to land at the Montréal-Trudeau airport at 8:50 p.m. It is also carrying passengers with a ticket for a later travel date, as well as customers from another airline, and Canadian residents wishing to return home. “Our clients, as well as their loved ones, have experienced a trying week, under a lot of uncertainty,” says Annick Guérard, Chief Operating Officer at Transat, who was on site in Port-au-Prince to accompany the travellers back home with Jean-François Lemay, President of Air Transat. “Since the rise of tensions in Haiti about a week ago, our teams have been mobilized and working hard to return our clients home safely, and as quickly as possible. In Haiti, Transat’s representative also remained at the hotel 24/7 throughout the week to keep our passengers informed of the situation as it unfolded. We are relieved that these travellers are on their way to Canada, but we remain concerned about the current difficult situation in Haiti.” Late afternoon on February 15, travellers were informed that they would be leaving the Royal Decameron Indigo Beach Resort & Spa, located on the Côte des Arcadins, by helicopter the following day. And, at around 9 a.m. on February 16, the first passengers were transported to the airport, and rotations continued for a few hours. The evacuation was orchestrated by Transat, in collaboration with the local authorities, the Canadian Embassy in Haiti and the Canadian government, to ensure the safety of the passengers. Until further notice, Air Transat will continue to operate two flights a week to and from Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, on Wednesdays and Sundays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 4 hours ago, Malcolm said: Yesterday, February 16, 2019, 10:24:22 PM Until further notice, Air Transat will continue to operate two flights a week to and from Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, on Wednesdays and Sundays. You have to wonder, in light of the following, if AT will cease it operations until things settle down. You also have to wonder how the operating crews will react to the new warning. Is AC continuing to operate? Risk level(s) Haiti - AVOID ALL TRAVEL Avoid all travel to Haiti due to civil unrest throughout the country. The security situation could further deteriorate quickly. You should consider leaving by commercial means while they are available, if you can do so safely https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/haiti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 I have the answer to my question re AC Air Canada Flight departs Port-au-Prince, Haiti Today with 209 Customers Onboard Today, February 19, 2019, 13 minutes ago | Canadian Aviation News Provided by Air Canada/CNW Airline monitoring situation to determine when Haiti flights can safely resume MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ – Today Air Canada flight AC1815 departed Port-au-Prince, Haiti with 209 customers and 16 crew and support employees onboard a Boeing 767-300ER Air Canada Rouge aircraft. “Air Canada Flight AC1815 has now departed Port-au-Prince safely and is enroute to Montreal. I thank our employees for their round-the-clock efforts to make today’s flight a success, including their diligent efforts in challenging circumstances to reach out to Air Canada’s as well as other airlines’ customers seeking to return to Canada,” said Craig Landry, Executive Vice President, Operations at Air Canada. “Our thoughts are with the Haitian people during this period of disturbance. Given the strong ties between our two countries, Air Canada has a long, proud history of serving Haitiand we intend to resume regular service as soon as it is safe to do so.” Air Canada normally operates two flights weekly between Montreal and Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Mondays and Wednesdays. Following the Government of Canada’s advisory to avoid all travel to Haiti, Air Canada’s next scheduled flight on Wednesday to Haiti is cancelled. Air Canada is monitoring this situation closely to determine when it will be safe to resume flights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Latest from AT Quote Situation in Haiti – February 17, 2019 updateFebruary 17, 2019 4:00 PM Global Affairs Canada has recently elevated it’s advisory for Haiti to avoid all travel due to the reigning civil unrest throughout the country. This is the highest level of the Canadian government’s Travel Advice and Advisories. Considering the current level of insecurity, we strongly recommend that you respect this advisory.Information regarding vacation packages Given the uncertain accessibility of the road leading to the Royal Decameron Indigo Beach, Transat cannot guarantee safe transfers and has therefore stopped the sale of vacation packages, until the end of April 2019. Information regarding flights Until the government has reduced its alert level, all customers who have booked a flight to Haiti for the months of February, March and April 2019 are entitled to modify their reservation without penalty. Customers are invited to contact their travel agency or Air Transat’s Contact Center to adjust their file accordingly. For the time being, Air Transat’s flight operations continue as planned. However, the situation may change at any moment and without notice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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